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1. Importance of Insects
a. Decomposers- break down dead organisms into smaller parts
i. Examples: Beetles, Worms
b. Pollinators- help to produce plants by transferring pollen to the female
reproductive part of the plant
i. Examples: Bees, Ants
c. Source of food for other species
d. Improve soil quality
i. Examples: Lady bugs, worms
e. Pests- some insects are destructive and can be harmful
f. Entomologists- study insects
2. Physical characteristics
a. Parts
i. Abdomen
1. It is needed in insects to help them breathe and digest their food.
ii. Thorax
1. The area right behind the head that has the legs and wings.
a. All insects have 6 legs.
iii. Head
1. Is where their antennas, eyes and mouth is located.
iv. Exoskeleton
1. Provides protection to the insects, located under skins.
v. Antennae
1. Located on the head to help insects navigate
vi. Compound eyes
1. Allow insects to see using different lenses
2. How does that help them see?
vii. Segmented
1. There are 3 segments located on an insects body
viii. Notum
1. Top part of the insects’ body
2. Provides a stiff, rigid structure that wings need to create to lift and
support the insects in the air
ix. Pleura
1. Side part of the insects’ body
2. Creates more limb mobility
b. How they survive in the world
 i. Adaptations
1. How the insect changed their looks and how they survived
environments changes.
2. Examples: Evolution of flight, Defense body coverings (ex. horns)
c. Movement
i. Insects get around the world by flying, crawling, swimming
3. Life Cycle
a. Metamorphosis- the process of transformation from an immature form to an
adult form in two or more stages
b. Incomplete Metamorphosis- Type of insect development, where an insect’s body
does not change as much.
The Three Stages:
i. Egg- Laid by a female insect, this is where the insects first appear.
ii. Nymph- Like Larva stage but looks like a smaller version of the adult,
these only have wing buds, no wings just yet.
iii. Adult- Grows bigger and is able to have its wings and can repeat the life
cycle.
c. Completed Metamorphosis- Type of insect development where insects go
through many changes as they grow up
The Four Stages
i. Eggs- Laid by a female insect, small oval shaped, the first stage of insects..
ii. Laval Stage- Hatches from an egg, is worm or caterpillar like shaped,
and molt as they grow
iii. Pupal Stage- The cocoon stage, the insect will be in a protected barrier.
iv. Adult Stage- The final stage, where the insect can repeat the life cycle.
d. Chrysalis- the transformation from egg to caterpillar to chrysalis and, finally,
adult.
i. They do not eat
ii. Grows wings, legs, and internal organs
e. Molting occurs when insects break out of their old skin
4. Ecology of Insects
a. Social Insects: Insects that are organized into colonies, consist of several
generations, work together to complete a common job, and rely on each other
to maintain survival
i. Bees
1. Types of Bees
a. Guard Bees: Guard the hive and prevent foreign bees from
other hives from entering
i. Lost bee: A foreign bee that is trying to enter and
join another hive
 1. A lost bee may be welcomed into a hive if
they bring a lot of food as an offer
b. Queen Bee: A singular bee within a hive that lays eggs and
uses pheromones and movement to communicate
instructions to direct and organize the rest of the bees
c. Worker Bees: Sterile female bees whose job involves
taking care of the queen bee, the queen’s eggs, building
and maintaining the hive, collecting nectar, collecting
pollen, making honey
d. Drone Bees: Male bees without stingers whose job is to
mate with the queen bee
2. Communication
a. Bees use specific motions and pheromones to
communicate with the rest of the bees in the hive
i. Motions:
1. The Queen bee uses different motions in
order to communicate instructions involving
her needs or what she wants accomplished
within the hive
2. Worker bees use motions to communicate
the location of a food source, if there is
danger around, or to give instructions
ii. Pheromones: A chemical scent given off by an
animal that sends a message of affects the
behavior of other animal species in the periphery
1. Bees detect pheromones by rubbing their
antennae over the bee who is trying to
communicate with them
ii. Ants
1. Communication
a. Smell
i. When ants want to communicate a message of
warning, greeting, or instruction, they emit a scent
called a pheromone
ii. When ants are receiving a message from another
ant, they use their antennae to smell the
pheromones and accept the message
 b. Sound: Ants have a joint between their waist and
abdomen that they rub together to create a squeaky
sound that lets other ants know if they are trapped in the
dirt or are in danger
c. Touch: To convey the message of discovering food or
wanting food, ants tap their antennas against the
antennae of the ant they are trying to communicate that
message to
d. Taste: By sharing food with another ant mouth-to-mouth
chemically creates a familial connection between ants
2. Ant colonies: A group of ants that could contain between 12 to 7
million ants, depending on the size of the family; the three roles in
an ant family include the worker, the male ant, and the queen ant
a. The Worker: Female ants that are the smallest in the
family and perform all duties related to maintaining
organization of the colony such as building nests,
transporting food, and protecting all members of the
colony.
i. Queen tender: Help the Queen ant deliver her eggs
ii. Nurse ant: Prevent unhatched ant eggs from drying
out by licking them and helping them grow by
feeding them
iii. Foragers: Hunt for and bring food back to the nest
to feed all members of the colony
iv. Guard: Prevent ants that do not belong to a certain
colony by blocking the entrance of the anthill
v. Tunnel digger: Build more tunnels and chambers
within an ant nest to create more space
b. Male Ants: Ants that have wings and are of the male
gender, they only come out in the summer when it’s time
to mate with the Queen ant.
c. Queen Ant: The mother of all ants in the colony whose
sole purpose is to lay eggs; most queen ants lay one
million eggs annually
3. Habitat
a. Anthill/ Ant nest
 i. Anthill: Piles of dirt above ground that act as an
entry way into the tunnels that lead to the
chambers of the ant nest below ground
ii. Ant chambers: TIny pods of space within the ant
nest used for storing food, protecting unhatched
ant eggs, capturing water, and housing the queen
ant while she lays eggs
1. Day nursery: An ant chamber located closer
to the anthill so that it has access to the
sun’s rays during the daytime to keep
unhatched ant eggs warm
2. Night nursery: An ant chamber located
closer to the earth’s surface which has
collected the sun’s heat all day and keeps
unhatched ant eggs warm overnight
iii. Purpose of living in the dirt: Decompose plant and
animal matter and turn it into nutrients beneficial
for plant growth
b. Plants
i. Plants: Certain species live in plants such as orchid
flowers, tree trunks, branches, leaves, and plant
thorns; in exchange for shelter, ants that live in
plants nourish them and protect them from danger
1. Nourishment: Fertilize the soil with
decomposed plant, bringing nutrients
directly to the plant, or transporting pollen
for pollination
2. Protection: Guard holes in branches and
tree trunks in order keep predators from
entering and colonizing
4. The Ant Calendar
a. February: Prepare for the spring by gathering food and
repairing the nest
b. March: The Queen Ant starts laying eggs
c. April-May: Ants protect aphids (a type of insect) from
predators in exchange for honeydew, a sweet secretion
that aphids produce and ants consume
 d. June: The queen ants and male ants that were born in
March leave the nest in order to find mates and start their
own ant colonies
e. July: A break for ants where they do not have to carry out
any specific tasks
f. August: Ants collect more food for their entire colony
g. September: As it gets colder and natural food sources are
harder to find, ants battle each other for any remaining
food
h. October: The birthing process of more ants comes to an
end and any remaining ant eggs are consumed by the
worker ants so they can survive underground during the
winter
i. November: Any holes in the anthill and ant nest are
blocked to keep out the winter cold
j. December and January: Ants burrow 3 feet underground
with their family members to stay warm until February.
5. Kinds of Ants
a. Cornfield Ants: Found under sidewalks and in cornfields;
take care of aphids in exchange for honeydew
b. Fire ants: Stinging ants and known for damaging farm
crops
c. Little black ants: The commo ant; found in the grass and
gardens; live off of food crumbs
d. Acrobat ants: Known for their upwards-tilted abdomen
and raising different insects within their own homes
e. Carpenter ants: Ants that make their nests in wood and
tree trunks
f. Argentine ants: Ants commonly found in homes
g. Wood ants: Live in dirt and pine needles in the forest
because they attack any tree-destroying insects.
h. Weaver ants: Ants found in Africa, Asia, and Australia;
chase other insects and animals from their nests
i. Bulldog ants: Most known for their long jaws of sharp
teeth and jumping capabilities; found in Australia
j. Honeypot ants: Live in the desert and use their bodies to
store honey for later use
k. Leafcutter ants: Typically found in a large colony and are
known for quickly sawing leaves off of trees
l. Trap-jaw ants: Have large jaws that can close in less than
one-thousandth of a second
m. Harvester ants: Ants that live in the desert, collect seeds
for food, and are known for their large anthills
n. Army ants: Ants that can be found marching en masse
through the jungle, consuming any animal or insect that
gets in their path.